3 out of 4 people found the following review useful:Fairly Good Remake - Necessarily Different from the Original, 13 February 2014

I approached the Fede Alvares remake of Evil Dead with both trepidation
and curiosity. My concerns were simple - Who could possibly improve on
a Sam Raimi film? How can you call it Evil Dead without Bruce Campbell?

My concerns began to evaporate when I noticed Raimi's involvement in
the opening credits and were completely dispelled when I realized that
the new film shared only the most fundamental plot structure with the
original. Both films are about friends in a cabin in the woods fighting
a mysterious, purely evil, and incomprehensible force triggered by a
mysterious ancient book. Otherwise, the films are only vaguely
connected.

So this answered my first question - about remaking a Raimi film. You
don't, you simply do something new on the same foundation.

The new Evil Dead is much more of a straightforward horror film and the
differences go way beyond the disturbing addition of a crack addict as
a central character. Most of the central characters aren't even
likable, let alone funny. So much for my question about replacing Bruce
Campbell. Again - you don't.

In 1981, Sam Raimi, his brother, an aspiring actor (Campbell) and a
group of non-actors and amateur film makers made a horror classic with
almost no budget and a great deal of debt. It took more than a decade
for them to recoup the costs of this near-instant cult classic though
the film was viewed as a "break-through". More recently, as one of
Hollywood's most respected directors and producers, Raimi gave young
Uruguayan writer / director Fede Alvares a shot at creatively re-
imagining the film that made Raimi a contender.

The acting is better than that of the original (which should be no
surprise since there were really only two actors in the Raimi film),
the effects are more sophisticated, but cleverly reminiscent of the
Raimi tradition of clever simplicity, and the film, like the original
delivers a few good scares despite its ridiculous premise.

Shot for about $17,000,000 (which is not much these days), the Alvares
re-do netted a 300% profit before it left theaters. Profitability has
very little to do with quality these days, but I say good for them!

3 out of 4 people found the following review useful:Pulp for Genre Purists, 13 February 2014

Iron Man 3 is more of a moving comic than a motion picture. Even the
cinematography is reminiscent of old-time comic book panels. The story
is light years from any reality we participate in. Like the best
comics, it alludes to various aspects of history and reality cleverly
but without yielding to the oppression of the everyday. Iron Man 3 is
not entirely consistent with the rest of the franchise, however. Iron
Man's various armor configurations appear to be a lot less resilient
and functional than in the previous films (a bit like the difference
between the creature in Alien and those of Aliens).

Tony Stark is experiencing a great deal of apparently justifiable
paranoia. He is also suffering from crippling anxiety attacks and
nightmares. At one point, he is diagnosed by the most likable, heroic,
and memorable character in the film - pre-teen Harley Keener (played by
Ty Simpkins) - as suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

Stark is facing a shadowy, almost invisible, enemy, who is apparently
hidden in plain sight. Having lost what would appear to be a decisive
battle, Stark must rely on his wits, his own unreliable technology, and
a series of unlikely heroes - a young boy (Simpkins), the alcoholic
mother of a dead soldier, a media operator with a good internet
connection - to prevail. Of course, Pepper (Paltrow), his AI Jarvis
(Paul Bettany) and War Machine/Iron Patriot/Colonel Rhodes (Don
Cheadle) also come in handy.

The plot is extremely predictable, but it moves along and successfully
relies on escapism, awe-inspiring effects, and entertainment value.

With their respective talents, Paltrow, Downey and Pearce didn't even
need to try. Paltrow and Pearce do, however, and really make the film
worth watching. Downey never seems as fully engaged with this script as
he has in previous comic book films. All the same, Iron Man 3 is a lot
of fun and will appeal to those in search of the insane action,
dysfunctional myopia of the main character and the tongue-in-cheek,
slightly smarter-than-average dialog that characterize this franchise.

1 out of 3 people found the following review useful:See the Right One, 31 January 2012

Oskar is a smart, if somewhat desensitized young teen from a broken
home. Persecuted by his peers, he presents stoicism to the world and
inwardly fantasizes about killing his persecutors as he becomes
increasingly alienated from his parents. Kåre Hedebrant breathes a
great depth into Oskar, creating a highly sympathetic, entirely
believable and yet quite edgy protagonist.

When a strange little girl, Elli (Lina Leandersson) bonds with him by
announcing, out of nowhere, that they can not be friends, an intense
Platonic love story begins. Elli, who may not be entirely human, and
Oskar, a perennial victim, learn to defend each other in the only ways
they can and in ways only they can.

The story is quite touching, but, unsurprisingly, will leave you
wondering how something so 'off' could be so delightfully moving. With
a budget around $4,000,000.00, veteran director Alfredson has clearly
gotten a great deal of art out of comparatively few resources.

Adapted from a John Ajvide Lindqvist novel, Let the Right One In is a
movie worth seeing at least once. It features exceptionally good
acting, superb character development, straightforward but appropriate
cinematography, and a memorably twisted love story. Accept no
big-budget low quality imitations. This is the one you need to see.

1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:Justice vs. the Law, 11 June 2011

Jean Valjean (Frederick March) steals a loaf of bread to feed his
sister's children and is sent to prison for ten years. Prison degrades
him and he completes his term a broken and, possibly insane, man. While
in prison, one of the guards, Javert (Charles Laughton), takes note of
Val jean's remarkable strength. Javert is more obviously unstable - he
is obsessed with the rigid enforcement of the law, in denial of his
past (his parents were criminals. Confused, depressed, and very
fearful, Valjean ventures into his parole with questionable intentions.
But he is soon taken in by a very kindly Bishop who bends the truth in
order to protect Jean from himself and the police. Explaining himself,
the priest tells Jean that 'Life is to give, not to take'. This single
act, and the priest's words, set Valjean upon a path of service and
honor which requires him to reinvent himself. In Act 2, we meet him in
the person of Mssr. Madeline, a successful and well-loved businessman
who is being asked to run for mayor in the small town he has done so
much for. Complicating matters, Javert has been appointed to head the
local constabulary.

Through all three parts of this epic story, Valjean is pursued by his
former captor, whether by circumstance or obsessive intent. This is the
central conflict of the story, but the depth and elements of the
conflict truly hinge upon a non-participant third-party.
Valjean/Madeline meets Cosette, a good-hearted but more-or-less orphan
child whose plight reminds him of his sister's children and deeply
touches his heart. He reunites Cosette and her mother, giving them both
a good home for the mother's final weeks. After she passes, he
essentially adopts Cosette. The love that develops between Cosette and
Jean, that of a father and daughter, saves them both. Perhaps this love
will eventually save the incorrigible and obsessed Javert.

Les Miserables is written with extremely powerful characterization,
from a deeply Catholic/Christian perspective, though it is not an
evangelical work. Although none of the characters are stereotypes,
archetypes, or caricatures, the central conflict is not one of men, but
rather one of faith. Javert perfectly represents faith in the laws of
men, the Bishop reflects the laws of his god, and Valjean must resolve
the inevitable conflicts between the two both internally and
externally. The ethics of Les Miserables is, in contrast to the opinion
of one popular review, far from 'situational.' It would be much better
described as 'subtle', complex, and very carefully considered. The
simple message is that law is no substitute for justice.

Victor Hugo's Les Miserables is probably my favorite novel of all time.
While leaving whole episodes of this massive tome out, the
unfortunately short-lived Richard Boleslawski's 1935 film captures more
than just the essence and spirit of the book and is not a Reader's
Digest condensation or a "Cliff Notes" version. The W.P. Lipscomb
script is perfectly economical and Boleslawski wisely relied on Gregg
Tolland's spectacular camera work to tell more of the story than the
dialog. Despite the difficulty of distilling a 1000+ page, relatively
dense French novel into a film of slightly over 1.5 hours, the director
made the camera responsible for conveying a great deal of information
about the story and the characters . The casting is also quite perfect.
March and Laughton are tremendous in what may be the apex of their
collaborative efforts. I was also impressed by the performances in a
few of the minor roles - Cedric Hardwicke (the Bishop) and Frances
Drake (Eponine) especially.

All considered, this film should appeal to those who appreciate mature,
intelligent, morality plays spiced up with a bit of adventure, and
those who are looking for a good film version of the classic novel.

15 out of 20 people found the following review useful:Much better than it deserved to be, 15 May 2011

Not recommended for fans of typical zombie films.

Recommended for those who have been waiting for an independent horror
film which does not simply make fun of the genre.

A team of angry Parisian police officers vow revenge against a gang
lead by two Nigerian brothers who have recently killed a friend of
theirs. They lead a seemingly suicidal, unsanctioned, raid on the
gang's compound and are almost immediately captured. As the torture,
interrogation, and killing of police slowly reaches an apex, it becomes
apparent that the cops and gangsters should probably be the least of
each other's worries. Inexplicably, zombies are destroying
civilization, and Paris is burning. Don't be fooled by the complete
absurdity of this premise. The Horde, though redolent with the usual
genre-defining campiness and cliché, is not a self-parody, and does not
bother to explain itself.

Aside from Mr. Romero's more serious efforts, I have rarely seen a
zombie film which was created with the level of TLC that went into The
Horde. Most of the characters actually have their own personalities and
the acting is good. The script is, though predictable, a lot less
absurd than the usual horror film, and never insults your intelligence.
Though the film is not utterly humorless, it stops well short of
comedy, and carries its plot admirably. The visual effects and
choreography are excellent. Claude Perron's fight scenes are especially
entertaining.

6 out of 7 people found the following review useful:Somewhat reflexive presentation about schizophrenia, 15 May 2011

Do not expect to be entertained, and do not expect to be overwhelmed by
the aesthetic of this film. Julien Donkey Boy is no more beautiful than
its subject. Harmony Korine, in directing and writing this film, has
done exactly what he set out to do - he has created a concentrated dose
of family life with schizophrenia. In saying that the experience is
concentrated, what I mean is that the film uses exaggeration rather
liberally in order to condense its somewhat impossibly defined subject
matter. Although there are certainly interwoven story arcs for the main
characters, there is no central plot, no linearity, no unfragmented
reality. The film itself, therefore, is just a little unhinged.

One of my older sisters was schizophrenic. You would have to condense a
couple decades worth of her psychotic episodes into a couple of hours
to get anywhere near the level of constant distress that is depicted in
this film. I most closely related to the character of Pearl, Julien's
pregnant sister, but recognized aspects of my own family in all of the
characters. What I am trying to say is that there is certainly some
truth to what this movie says and the archetypal characters portrayed,
its truth may be hard to recognize if you haven't lived through it.

Living with a schizophrenic will bring out and amplify your own nature
- and if you are open to it, you will be a better person. It is also,
however, fairly easy to allow the experience to overwhelm you. People
who have never been exposed to schizophrenia in any but a superficial
way will find most of the film's characters and vignettes very
difficult to believe. I am pretty sure Korine knew this going in.

Korine has portrayed schizophrenia in a sensitive and truthful, but
nevertheless utterly disturbing and somewhat unrealistically condensed
way. Every directorial decision is meant to create a sense of realism.
The method is very effective, and the film is essentially successful.
Julien intentionally and clearly positions its audience as voyeurs,
using hand-held photography almost exclusively and allowing character-
development (the bulk of the film) to dictate the pace and rhythm of
every scene. All of the acting is superb, and although there are very
few feel-good moments in this film, it may be somewhat cathartic for
folks like me, and somewhat (painfully) enlightening for those who grew
up in less dysfunctional, or more-traditionally dysfunctional,
families.

3 out of 4 people found the following review useful:Not the Standard B Movie Fare, 13 February 2011

Mindwarp is a relatively early effort by Steve Barnett (Director) and
Henry Dominic (writer). Barnett is chiefly known for post-production
work, which, surprisingly, is not a major feature of Mindwarp. His few
directorial efforts have been limited to fairly dubious material like
Scanner Cop II. Dominic has done some more high-profile writing in
recent years, including Terminator III. Given this team's background in
sci-fi, and the timing of the film (1992), it should not be surprising
that Mindwarp blends plot-heavy cyberpunk, horror, and hardcore sci-fi.
What is, perhaps, surprising, is how well it does so with an obviously
low budget.

Several years before the Matrix began shooting, Mindwarp presented the
story of Judy, a smart, precocious but sheltered young 'in-worlder' who
wants to experience real life, rather than simply plugging into the
seemingly utopian synthetic fantasy world she can access through a
serial port in the back of her neck. She just has the feeling that
there must be something more to life. Of course, she has no idea what
might await in the "deadlands". Most of the film follows her adventures
in captivity among subterranean cult of mutant land-fill denizens and
the struggle she shares with hero Bruce Campbell as they try to free
themselves from the evil grip of the cult leader, Scrimm. Despite the
straightforward action, however, Mindwarp is anything but a
straightforward story.

With a cast featuring B Movie legends Bruce Campbell and Angus Scrimm
(Phantasm)you might expect Mindwarp to be an archetypal B film. Not
only does Mindwarp exceed the B film standard but it also manages to
entertain on more levels than most of Bruce Campbell's films do - no
mean feat. Unlike many films in which he appears, Campbell does not
dominate the screen throughout the film and does not have many
opportunities to utter any of his hallmark clichés. Instead, we have
Marta Martin (AKA Marta Alicia) in her second major role. Martin plays
the immature yet very headstrong Judy very well, and would subsequently
land many returning roles on popular TV shows. Their nemesis, Angus
Scrimm, as of 2010, is 84 years old and still acting. He plays
essentially the same role he has had countless times - a big, menacing,
old, creep. Only a few other actors have speaking roles in this fairly
intelligent mutant gruntfest.

This horror/psycho thriller/sci fi story pits a hard-nosed, naive and
ethical businesswoman against the existing power structure at a very
large defense contractor, Chaank Industries. What Hayden Cale (Ely
Puget) does not know is that, underlying most of what she knows as
Chaank Industries, is a murderous maniac - Jack Dante. Dante is played
by the remarkable, under-rated, Brad Dourif (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's
Nest, Eyes of Laura Mars, Blue Velvet, Dune, Wild Blue Yonder, Lord of
the Rings, etc etc). Dante will do ANYTHING to avoid having his sick
little world disturbed... anything. The plot and characters are a
string of clichés, but the movie does not take itself very seriously,
and what results is a campy, intelligent, self-parody. Direct homages
are paid to off-beat directors who frequently use comedy to liven up
sci fi and horror stories - There are major supporting characters named
Sam Raimi, John Carpenter and Scott Ridley.

Dourif, the deft pacing of the film, and the cleverly written script
make this predictable farce thoroughly enjoyable. Richard Brake makes a
very good impression in a support role, and lead Puget is charismatic
and manages to play her role laudably straight as a counterpoint to
Dourif's utterly bizarre behavior.

Death Machine was Stephen Norrington's directorial debut. Norrington
has done and continues to do a lot of visual effects and robotics work
on major releases which require substantial, cutting edge, effects. He
also directed the decent but disappointing League of Extraordinary
Gentlement and is now working on a re-make of The Crow.

5 out of 5 people found the following review useful:I got through it - what do I win?, 3 August 2010

Sam Newfield, director of White Pongo, had a long and productive
career, spanning from the mid-1920s to the mid-1960s. Averaging 3-4
films per year (a total of 7 in 1951), he apparently did not have a
great deal of time to waste with art, script refinement, and
cinematography. His most well-known films achieve a relatively high
rating here on IMDb (4), and are all within the horror genre (e.g. Dead
Men Walk), but he did occasionally branch out into Sci-Fi (Lost
Continent) and made a decent number of respectable war and western
films in the last ten years of his career. Although I have not seen
many of Newfield's films, and remember even fewer, I am willing to
wager that White Pongo is fairly representative of the lot.

There are essentially two weakly developed plots. First - an expedition
of upper crust white guys and a beautiful young woman are out in the
jungle searching for a missing link (an albino gorilla whose only truly
distinguishing characteristic is bad costuming). Since this plot had
been done several times previously in equally bad films and the
excellent King Kong, the screenwriter included a rather over-dramatic
romantic quadrangle between the young lady, a privileged jerk to whom
she is apparently betrothed, a decent young laborer, and - of course -
the albino gorilla. Raymond Schrock, who had been writing for film
since the teens gets the only credit I can give anybody in the
production team for giving the actors something reasonable to work
with. Schrock is an interesting character. Most of the films he was
involved with are very obscure and difficult to find, but those which
remain in the light seem to rate pretty highly here on IMDb. Sadly,
White Pongo was made within the last five years of his career. and, in
terms of plot, it's a very predictable, unoriginal, mess.

The cinematography is fairly standard for the jungle adventure genre as
it stood in the middle of the 20th century. In other words, it is quite
limited by available technology and set problems. The directing
exemplifies the term "pedestrian", and the acting, though uninspired,
is not nearly as bad as might be expected from the largely unknown
cast. Those interested in the history of African American participation
in film may be interested to see activist actor Joel Fluellen playing
an unfortunate stereotype "Mumbo Jumbo" in this film, and will
appreciate the irony that the only two 'ethnic' actors in this film
(Fluellen and Al Eban) outlasted the rest of the cast. Fluellen
appeared in some fairly good roles in Oscar and Grammy nominated films
late in his career.

Best viewed with the aid of intoxicants and friends with good senses of
humor. Otherwise - to be avoided.

5 out of 5 people found the following review useful:Solid Early '60s Italian Hard Sci-Fi, 3 August 2010

The appearance of Claude Rains is not the only surprise in Anthony
Dawson's Il pianeta degli uomini spenti (A.K.A. Battle of the Worlds).
Rains plays an eccentric, reclusive, contemptuous elderly scientist who
leads a powerful research team. Professor Benson is the best, and he
has little patience for lesser minds. His only link to humanity seems
to be Eve (Maya Brent), his assistant. Her coming of age, the
insubordination of one of the younger members of his research team, and
the impending arrival of an enormous and mysterious space object - The
Outsider - combine to challenge "the old man's" carefully-constructed
self concept, his arrogance, and, ultimately, the continuation of life
on earth.

Ultimately, this is one of Italy's best and most serious sci-fi films,
and one of the better early '60s sci-fi films to come out of Europe.
The relatively primitive (but creative) effects coupled with the very
serious and dramatic tone of the dialog may be difficult for most
American viewers. Giorgio Giovannini's soundtrack is jarring and
intense. And the excellent, but sometimes surreal, Marcello Masciocchi
cinematography won't help the average viewer enjoy this film. The
international cast (mostly Americans) does very well.

Given the film's dubious pedigree and silly cliché title, I can
certainly understand why some reviewers felt compelled to use the words
"cheesy" and "spaghetti" in their reviews. I am tempted to point out
that macaroni and cheese is a very tasty dish, but I will refrain.
Approach this film with an open mind and you might just be able to get
something more than guilty pleasure from it.